Jason Breon Smith, age 53, of Ogden, Utah, suddenly passed away on August 29, 2026. Jason was born January 28, 1973, in Ogden, Utah, and raised in Kaysville, Utah, the son of Brent Smith and Carol Hickenlooper Furgeson.

Jason grew up alongside his brother, Justan Smith, and his sister, Tammi Smith, who would become his best friend. Family was important to Jason, and he loved being surrounded by the people he loved. He was affectionate by nature, had the best hugs, and his family noticed there was rarely a time he would leave without saying, "I love you."

Jason was the kind of person who saw the good in people. He rarely spoke badly about anyone and wasn't one to judge others for where they had been or what they had done. His life was not without hardship, and his road was rarely an easy one. But those who knew him also knew there was far more to his story than his struggles. Jason understood, perhaps better than most, that people are more than their mistakes and their hardest chapters. He had a big heart, accepted people as they were, and would willingly give someone the shirt off his back.

Those who knew Jason will also remember just how much fun he could be. He was charming, charismatic, sarcastic, handsome, and wonderfully goofy. He loved making people laugh and had a contagious laugh and a beautiful smile of his own. Jason could invent a funny identity, character, or completely ridiculous scenario on the spot, and before long, his daughters and the rest of the family would be playing right along with him. He had a way of turning an ordinary afternoon into a story the family would laugh about for years.

Jason was naturally athletic and excelled at football, basketball, soccer, and golf. He loved sports throughout his life and was an especially devoted Pittsburgh Steelers fan. He also loved being outdoors and in nature, where he could feel free.

Music was another great love of Jason's life. He had an incredible ability to hear a song and name the band and somehow seemed to know every word. Staind, Slipknot, and Linkin Park were among his favorites. Jason was creative in other ways, too, and could often be found drawing.

That creativity definitely followed him into the kitchen. Jason was a great cook who had a knack for making something out of nothing. He was especially good at grilling steaks and earned his place as the family grill master. He also apparently believed there were very few meals that couldn't benefit from a bag of tater tots. Tater tot tacos and tater tot enchiladas were only a couple of his creations. And when he wasn't reinventing the possibilities of the tater tot, Jason liked to imagine himself working as a barista, mixing up elaborate coffee concoctions from whatever ingredients happened to be around the house.

Some of the most meaningful pieces of Jason's life were found in the ways he loved his family. His first love and high school sweetheart was Lisa Cook, with whom he welcomed his daughter, Cassadie Cook, at a young age. Jason's first tattoo was Cassadie's name across his chest, right above his heart. His devotion carried on when, years later, he crocheted a beautiful, special blanket for his daughter Ashley Smith with her name worked into it. With his youngest daughter, Jaci River Smith, some of his treasured memories came from caring for her when she was a little baby. Jason also adored his granddaughter, Tayler Leth, and loved telling everyone just how much Tayler looked like her mom, Cassadie.

In the later years of his life, Jason faced struggles that sometimes made it difficult for the people who loved him to reach the person they knew was still there. His journey was complicated, and those challenges affected both Jason and the people who loved him. But they never erased the person deep down-the funny, creative, affectionate man with the enormous heart who loved music and family, who found freedom in nature, who could make people laugh, and who could turn an ordinary moment into a memory. That is the Jason his family hopes people will remember-the man behind all of it.

Jason's story was complicated, as many human stories are, but his hardest chapters were never the whole story. Perhaps most of all, Jason will be remembered for something worth carrying forward: his ability to see the good in people. He knew that someone's struggles did not tell you everything about who they were. He gave people grace, rarely judged, and looked for the person underneath the circumstances.

In remembering Jason, may we try to do the same-to look beyond someone's hardest chapters, to see the good that remains, and to remember the whole person.

Jason is survived by his daughters, Cassadie Cook, Ashley Smith, and Jaci River Smith; his granddaughter, Tayler Leth; his brother, Justan Smith; his sister and best friend, Tammi Smith; his nieces and nephews, Bessie Neiswender, Trevor Mark, Karlie Nelson, Bryton Smith, and Dayton Smith; as well as several beloved aunts, uncles, cousins, and extended family members.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Brent Smith and Carol Hickenlooper Furgeson.

His immediate family will hold a Celebration of Life in his honor on Saturday, September 5

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